actually roger i’m not so sure. in fact, i think the growing churches and mega churches employ these tactics.

Jacquie Kernick

You’ve got that so right, David…growing churches employ all of these tactics. The only one that wouldn’t have applied at the church I went to was the last one….no-one ever left with the blessing of the church/pastor, quite the opposite. We’d be told we’d left “the cover” and been disobedient to God….and to be careful as satan was on our tail!

People seem to have a need to be herded and controlled in so many of these churches…whew, I’ve escaped 🙂

Mar

Reads like a play book …. Disregard. Demean. Deny. Dismiss. Degrade. Demoralize.

All too deathly … Deathly true.

Kynan

You should go by the title confused pastor instead of naked pastor. What happened to you that you are so cynical toward the church? What is even worse is that you have a bunch of other vagabonds following your foolishness. Repent and believe the gospel

It would be funny if it didn’t actually happen; so very sad. So much of it is about fearful control. I prefer the model (I heard it from Frost n Hirsch) of the Aussie cattle properties (I think Yanks call ’em ranches) where there are no fences but instead deep wells. The sheep n cows stay near the wells because that’s where there is life. Thanks for that!

Micaëla

Ah… I see that you know our bishop too. As well as the majority of the clergy within our diocese.

Careful, Kynan – we may have to withdraw from you … I would think you would have known better than to say such things about the Lord’s Annointed (graffiti artist).

David

been there experienced it … and yep, dismissed with a blessing ……. and now … am no longer part of the machine, but … I still love Jesus

linda marie

Unfortunately, sometimes these attitudes aren’t verbalized to a congregation. Many of us would “run as fast as we can” if they were… Instead, we stick around and get wounded discovering what’s being “kept a secret”… So sad.

Christine

Number 10 can be the most insidious. It makes it so that “the church” in question is never wrong – just maybe the wrong place for *you*. Critique, concern and hurt are met with: “then let us make ourselves look like the open-minded soft-hearted good-guys while we simultaneously label you as ‘not us’ and show you the door”. It tries to guilt dissenters by making them feel like oursiders/betrayers/weaklings, while falsely comforting those that remain (“it’s not you, it’s them”) and shielding them from any real examination of the group by removing those that cross any lines too sensitive.

Kmansfield

Just floating by. These are behavior modification techniques, and are terribly manipulative. You’re right, silence the dissenters.

The same tactics are used in politics to maintain the cult and adherence to doctrine -talking points sent down from on high.
They are the borg.

Kayan is ironic; He projects cynicism, judges, shames, and insults to split the pure from the profane..

You’ll never have such an unpretentious friend as a ‘vagabond.’ okay, ..maybe a prostitute, but most certainly a vagabond carpenter.